Florida Woman Survives Vicious, 9-Minute Attack by Her Own Pit Bull

A Florida woman was so viciously attacked by her 9-year-old pit bull that she later lost her arm.

Yasmin Adam got her "gentle" pet, named Sir Hinkles, as a puppy and he was a loving companion until recently, when she broke up "a play fight" between the pit pull and her two other dogs.

Sir Hinkles started barking at her and then launched at her, biting her ear and mauling her arms. The attack lasted nine minutes, she said.

"I guess there was tension after the other dogs were fighting. Next thing I know, he jumps up and bites my ear. I knew what was going on, but I didn't feel any pain. I guess I was in shock," Adam said.

The dog owner said she ultimately gave up. "I just stopped fighting the dog. I figured I was going to die"

A friend who was staying with her at the time called 911. Police pepper-sprayed the animal and fatally shot it.

Doctors at Broward General Hospital tried for three weeks to save her left arm, but ultimately had to amputate it. Her right arm was also damaged and is heavily scarred. She called her recuperation "the most painful thing I've ever experienced."

She spent six months in the hospital and is now warning others that pit bulls can be dangerous pets.

"People always say, 'It's how you raise a dog that matters.' And I was one of those people. And I do believe to a certain extent that's true. But animals have an instinct they can't overpower and that's what happened with my dog."